Holster



J. G. HEIM Sept 6, 1960 HOLSTER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 12, 1958 /NVENTOI?.

J. G. HEIM Sept. 6, 1960 HOLSTER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 12, 1958 /NVNTO/?. dncoa Games HE/M HOLSTER Jacob Gaines Heim, Alhambra, Calif., assignor of thirtyfigeyercent to Thomas P. Mahoney, Pacific Palisades,

Filed May 12, 1958, Ser. No. 734,770

'3 Claims. (Cl. 224-2) This invention relates to holsters for hand guns, such as revolvers, automatic pistols and the like and is particularly directed to a holster which is adapted to be utilized for right or left-hand use without the necessity for making any structural change whatsoever in the holster to adapt it for such universal use.

It is well known to those skilled in the art that from time immemorial it has been customary to manufacture separate holsters for right and left-hand use. Thus, in the armed services it is necessary for men accustomed to a left-hand draw to be provided with a holster having a left-hand opening and, conversely, for those accustomed to a right-hand draw. In the toy field, it is necessary to manufacture right and left-hand holsters where the holsters are sold in sets for two-handed gun use.

Of course, the complications attendant upon the necessity for manufacturing separate right and left-hand holsters are obvious. In the first place, separate inventories of said holsters must be provided and thus what is tantamount to a duplicate stock of holsters is necessary. In the toy field, in particular, the loss of a left-hand holster and the replacement thereof necessitates the breaking-up of a set of holsters since manufacturers do not customarily provide separate right and left-hand holsters.

It is, therefore, an object of my invention to provide a holster adapted to be utilized in either right or left-hand positions and which does not need to be structurally changed in any way whatsoever to permit it to he located in either of said positions. If a conventional righthand holster were attempted to be used in this fashion, it would necessarily have to be reversed and thus a draw from the holster would be impossible.

An associated object. of my invention is the provision of a universal type holster which can be applied to either right or left-hand use and which thus eliminates the irksome necessity for manufacturing separate right and lefthand holsters. The significance of the invention becomes apparent when it is considered that in the toy field alone holster sets constitute the largest dollar volume. Thus, it will be possible for manufacturers practicing the teachings of my invention to eliminate the double inventory previously necessary due to the requirements that separate right and left-hand holsters be manufactured and kept in stock. 1

Furthermore, the obvious savings to the armed services and law enforcement bodies and the reduction in the warehouse stock of the armed services and law enforcement bodies will result in considerable economies to said services and resultant economies to the taxpayer.

In the toy field a loss of one holster will not, where the lost holster is a left-hand holster, entail the loss of usefulness of the entire holster set since a duplicate adapted for right-hand or left-hand use can be readily purchased.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following specification and the accompanying drawings which are for the purpose of illustration only and in which:

States Patent Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a typical holster constructed in accordance with the teachings of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a view of the holster disposed in a position opposite to that in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a top plan View taken from the direction of the arrow 3 of Fig. 2',

Fig. 4 is a vertical, sectional View taken on the broken line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a vertical, sectional view taken on the broken line 5-5 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a vertical, sectional view showing the holster of my invention applied to right-hand use;

Fig. 7 is a vertical, sectional view showing the holster of my invention applied to left-hand use;

Fig. 8 is an end elevational view of a closed holster constructed in accordance with the teachings of my invention;

Fig. 9 is a transverse, sectional view taken on the broken line 99 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a transverse, sectional view taken on the broken line 10-10 of Fig. 9;

Fig. 11 is a vertical, sectional view taken on the broken line 1'1--11 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 12 is a side elevational view of the shoulder holster constructed in accordance with the teachings of my invention;

Fig. 13 is a transverse, sectional view taken on the broken line 13-13 of Fig. 12;

Fig. 14 is an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional view taken on the broken line 14-14 of Fig. 12;

Fig. 15 is a transverse, sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the holster of my invention; and

Fig. 16 is a transverse, sectional view of yet another embodiment of the holster of my invention.

Referring to the drawings and particularly to Figs. 1-7 thereof, I show a holster 10 constructed in accordance with the teaching of my invention and adapted to be suspended from a belt, or similar suspensory device disposed at the waist of the wearer thereof. The holster 10 includes a body 12 of conventional configuration, said body defining a gun receiving pocket 14 between the side walls 18 thereof. The gun receiving pocket 14 is no larger than the gun receiving pocket in conventional holsters and the body 12 may be fabricated from a single piece of leather or other conventional material, said single piece being stamped or cut and having its contiguous free edges joined in operative relationship with each other by means of stitching 16 or other conventional fastening means.

If desired, the holster 10 can be fabricated from two identical, separate pieces of material which will define the opposite side walls 18 encompassing the gun receiving pocket 14.

Disposed within the pocket 14 and extending upwardly beyond the upper extremity of the body 12 is a supporting partition 20, said supporting partition. 20 being formed from leather or conventional holster material and having its lower extremity 22 fastened between the lower extremities of the side walls 18 by means of a rivet 24 or other conventional fastening means. The upper extremity of the supporting partition 20 incorporates a plurality of openings or slots 26 adapted to receive a belt or other means for supporting the holster 10 in either one of the chosen positions shown in Figs. 6 and 7 of the drawings.

The supporting partition 20 is adapted to be moved from its normal centrally located position shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings into either a right-hand or left-hand position contiguous to an adjacent wall. 18 of the holster body 12. The holster right-hand position in Fig. 6 of the drawings, the parti- 10 is shown as located in the tion 20 having been moved into contiguity to the righthand side wall 18 as viewed in said figure and the revolver 30 having been disposed to the left of the partition 20. Conversely, in Fig, 7 of the drawings the holster 10 is Shown as utilized in the left-hand position, the partition 20 having been moved into contiguity to the left-hand side wall 18' as viewed in said figure and the revolver 30 having been disposed to the right of the partition 20.

It is thus readily apparent that by the provision of a single, universally adaptable holster '10, right or left-hand use of the holster may be achieved and the necessity for providing separate right and left-hand'hols'ters has been obviated. The economics consequent upon the utilization of the holster of my invention have been adverted to in detail hereinabove and will not be repeated at this juncture.

An alternative form of the holster of my invention is shown in Fig. of the drawings, the holster 40 differing from the holster 10 disclosed hereinabove in that the sides 42 thereof are formed from separate pieces of material to define a gun receiving pocket 44. Moreover, the centrally located supporting partition 46 has its forward edge secured between the forward edges of the side pieces 42 by means of stitching 43, or the like, the rear edges of said sides being secured to each other by similar stitchin 48.

Thus, in the holster 40 the lower extremity of the supporting partition 46 is free of the lower extremity of the body of the holster and is suspended by engagement of its forward edge between the contiguous forward edges of the sides 42. 7

Another holster 50 constructed in accordance with the teachings of my invention is shown in Fig. 16 of the drawings, said holster being constituted by two identically shaped side pieces 52 which are stitched together at their rear edges by stitching 54 and which have inwardly directed extensions 56 wihch, when stitched together, as at 58, define a supporting partition 60 adapted to function in the same manner as the supporting partitions and 46 of the previously discussed embodiments of the invention.

While I have shown the teachings of the invention applied in Figs. 1-7 and 15-16 to an open type holster of the character generally supplied in toy holster sets, the principles of the invention can be applied with equal cogency to various other types of holsters such as the closed flap holster 70 shown in Figs. 8 through 11 of the drawings. The holster 70 includes a body 72 defining a gun receiving pocket 74, the rear and lower edges of the sides 76 of the holster being secured together by stitching 78.

Located in the pocket 74 is a supporting partition 80 whose lower extremity is stitched between the lower extremities of the side walls 76 of the body 72 and whose upper extremity has an elongated flop 82 formed there.- upon and integrally therewith. Eyelets 84 are mounted in partition 80 adjacent its upper extremity for the reception of a supporting clip 86 adapted to engage a belt or other supporting member.

Fastener receiving openings 88 are formed in the sides 76 of the holster body 72 and are adapted to receive a demountable fastener 90 which is supported in an opening 92 in the lower extremity of the flap 82, as best shown in Figs. 9 and 10 of the drawings. The fastener 90 is adapted to be slipped over the edge of the flap and incorporates a spring-biased tongue 94 which is receivable in the opening and servesto maintain the fastener in operative relationship therewith. The other side of the fastener has a spring stud 96 formed thereupon which is receivable in either of the fastener receiving openings 83 and which is adapted to be located within the trigger guard 98 of a gun mounted in the holster 70. The holster 70 is shown in Figs. 9 and 10 of the drawings with the partition 80 disposed in the right-hand position adjacent the right-hand side wall 76 as viewed in the drawings and with the revolver trigger guard disposed to the left thereof.

When it is desired to reverse the flap 82 for left-hand usage, the tongue 94 of the fastener 90 is released from the associated opening 92 and the stud 96 disposed on the opposite side of the flap. Of course, the support clip 86 must also be reversed in respect to the eyelets 84.

A holster 100 adaptedfor shoulder use is shown in Figs. 12 through 14 of the drawings and includes a body 102 defining a gun receiving pocket 104 and having side walls106 which are secured at their rear edges, by stitch: ing 108, as best shown in Figs. 12 and 13'of the drawings. A centrally located supporting partition 110 is located in the gun receiving pocket 104 and has its rearward ex tremity secured between the rearward edges of the side walls 106 by means of the stitching 108. The forward edge 112 of the partition is free to move to either side of the body 102 and thus permits use of the holster for either right or left-hand use.

The upper extremity of the supporting partition 110 is provided with an integral flap 116, said flap having a shoulder strap 118 sewed thereto at one end and having its other extremity connected to a link 120 on the body 102 of the holster 100. A belt strap 122 is secured to the lower, rearward extremity of the body'102 while a retainer strap '124 is fastened to the flap 116 by means of a demountable clip 126. A fastener 128 of the same character as the fastener 90 in the previously'discussed embodiment 70 of the invention is mounted on the lower extremity of the strap for engagement with a fastener receiving opening 130, as best shown in Fig. 13 of the drawings. 7

I thus provide by my invention a holster which is capable of either right or left-hand use without structurally altering the same. The principles of the invention are applicable to a wide variety of different types of holsters, as indicated by the illustrative embodiments discussed hereinabove. The use of the teachings'of the invention by manufacturers will reduce the inventory necessary where conventional right and left-hand holsters must be manufactured and will permit considerable savings to be achieved by armed forces and law enforcement bodies.

Of course, the holster of my invention can be modified to receive other than revolvers and the like. For instance, it can be used to hold welding guns and other tools.

I claim: i i

1. In a holster, the combination of: spaced side walls secured at their edges and defining a gun receiving pocket, said side walls being reduced in width from the top to the bottom thereof; and a partition located between said spaced side walls having its upper extremity projecting beyond portions of the upper extremities of said side walls, said partition having one vertical edge attached between adjacent edges of said side walls and having an unattached vertical edge permitting it to be deflected into contiguity with one or the other of said side walls, the upper extremity of said partition incorporating means thereupon for engagement by a supporting member, said partition being gradually reduced in width correspondingly with the reduction in width of said side walls.

2. In a holster iadpted to be mounted alternately in right or left-hand positions, the combination of: a gun receiving pocket member defined by spacer side walls, said side walls being reduced in width from the top to the bottom thereof; and a flexible supporting element secured at its bottom between and within said side walls and movable into alternative positions in which it is juxtaposed to either of said side walls, said supporting element having openings in its upper extremity for the reception of a holster supporting member, the upper extremity of said supporting element projecting beyond the tops of said sidewalls and said supporting element being correspondingly. reduced in width to saidsidew-alls.

3. In a holster for a gun which may be alternatively utilized in right or left-hand positions, the combination of: spaced side walls whose edges are secured to each References Cited in the file of this patent other to define a gun receiving pocket, said side walls UNITED STATES PATENTS being reduced in width from the top to the bottom thereof; and a centrally located, flexible supporting element 2232 2 n g secured at one edge between adjacent edges of said walls 5 1909942 1933 and movable into alternative poistions adjacent said walls, 2:223:029 Dumon 1940 said element projecting upwardly beyond said side walls 2,753,762 Medley Aug 14, 5 and having its upper extremity projecting beyond the FOREIGN PATENTS tops of said side walls, said supporting element being 10 correspondingly reduced in width to said side walls. 70,502 Norway May 27, 1946 

